After what felt like hours atop the constantly shifting waters, although it was probably closer to about fifteen minutes, the small pebbly beach was more than welcome. Naruto didn't even attempt decorum as he flopped down happily on the loose stones. He stared up at the sky for a moment, taking in a long – and in his opinion, well earned – breath, before bouncing back to his feet. He was by no means revitalised, he still ached from dodging so many explosions at close range, but he felt a little refreshed.
"Well that was eventful," he mused aloud as Mei, far more demurely, walked up to him. Both had sent their respective ANBU to help out in the fishing village. A few shinobi could make a startling difference in repairing buildings and helping with injuries, especially when one had Mokuton. Tenzo would be grouchy, but he could do the work of weeks in less than an hour. The village would probably be in a better condition than before the attack by the time they left.
"Quite," Mei said. "I understand you even managed to take yours captive."
Naruto waved his hand noncommittally. "I'll find out if it was the right call when we get back to the village. It'll be nice to finally put a pin in the Akatsuki though."
Mei chuckled as the two leaders watched the ongoing reconstruction from a distance. Village-folk tended to be slightly… intimidated, by such well known and infamous shinobi. "That I can understand most vehemently."
"Sasori wasn't amenable to capture then?"
Mei shrugged, although her eyes reflected something more vindictive. "I wasn't in the most merciful mood, and Akatsuki has somewhat of a… reputation, in our country. Besides, I doubt we could get anything useful from whatever that man had turned himself into. Better just to be rid of him." Her glance turned sideways as she gave the redhead a thoughtful expression. "Perhaps the terms of our negotiation could be altered somewhat. An exchange of information perhaps? In the interest of… international security."
A smirk pulled at Naruto's lips as he watched a house slowly grow from the ground like some well-organised plant. "It would certainly be useful not have to constantly re-invent the wheel; I'm sure we can work something out." His features immediately darkened as he shifted the large scroll he was carrying under one arm. "And on the note of re-negotiation, there's the small matter of the Sanbi to address."
Mei almost visibly tensed and her words dropped the honeyed tint that was so integral to her seductive nature. "Tread lightly Hokage-dono."
Naruto turned to her and she was surprised to find no hint of the stoic, sometimes amused Hokage that she had talked with in her office. Instead she found a tired young man. However, with the pretence stripped away, his warm violet eyes were replaced by something much harder and colder. "I'm going to drop the charade with you Mei. I want to walk away from here with the Sanbi."
To her credit, Mei took this on with all the poise she had accumulated over her storied career. "That's a tall order Naruto. And I feel I should remind you that we are currently within my borders and I'm less than amiable to threats today."
Some hint of the playful Naruto returned with the weary smile that tugged at his lips. "I'm not threatening Mei, I'm actually willing to make it quite profitable to you."
"A Jinchuuriki is worth no amount of money; they're a somewhat… limited commodity if you hadn't noticed."
That managed to pull a dry chuckle from the man. "Yes. You could say I'm pretty familiar with the idea."
Mei had the decency to look abashed. Naruto's status was hardly a secret to the upper echelons of the hidden villages' various organisations. It was just not thought about too often as the boy – well, she had to amend that to man after the events of the day – never used the power of the beast sealed within him. It was so easy to see him as the return of the yellow flash, and forget the far more dangerous detail of his heritage.
"My point stands."
"I wasn't offering money. How much does your village really need a Jinchuuriki Mei?" He set the large scroll down, keeping a hand on one end. "Especially this one, after your recent… difficulties." He couldn't decipher her expression so pressed on. "What you need is aid. Not in the charitable sense, I wouldn't presume that much on you. But favourable trade agreements? Cooperation? Exchange of information? That's all in my power."
He was throwing away his negotiating stance and she knew it, but as she had said, the Bijuu were one-time deals. Konoha could recover from a few unfavourable deals, despite their own recent troubles, the village was at its most profitable in decades. The question was just how much Kiri had suffered during its civil war. Even from the relatively little he had seen of the village-proper, Naruto was confident of the answer.
"That's a lot of political capital to throw away so early into your office," Mei warned, in the tone of somebody who hadn't decided and was simply stretching the conversation for time.
"I've been told I'm quite charismatic, I'd hope I could weather this."
"You're really serious about the cooperation between our village then? Something tells me this isn't some sham front designed to simply keep each other away from the other's throats."
The redhead let out a deep breath, feeling that the conversation had crested some metaphorical hill. Where it went from here was determined by pure momentum. "My father believed that the entire world could experience peace someday, a layover from his own teacher." Upon catching Mei's bemused expression he gave a wry grin. "I like to think myself a bit more pragmatic, but it's still a nice future to imagine. So here I am, finally in a position to start, just maybe, forging events in that direction. Why not take it?"
He felt the next few seconds were crucial in a way that he would never truly understand, before Mei rolled her eyes. "You know, against my better judgement, I find myself believing you." He was strangely glad to see that sultry smile return as she leaned in closer. "You do realize this won't stop me from clawing every concession you could imagine from these future negotiations, right?"
"I don't doubt it," Naruto said, chuckling.
"So, considering your intensity on the matter, I assume you have a Jinchuuriki in mind for when you get back home?" She was somewhat surprised by how quickly Naruto's face lost its mirth.
"If I have my way, the Sanbi will stay exactly where it is, in this scroll. Forever if need be."
There was another long pause where Mei seemed to size him up as if for the first time, before her usual expression returned. "You are truly the strangest man I have ever met Naruto Namikaze."
The redhead grinned. "I try." He glanced back towards the reconstruction, noting it was significantly further ahead than before. There was something to be said for witnessing Kiri and Konoha shinobi working side-by-side to help people. "So, allies then?"
Mei put a hand to her chest in faux-astonishment as the two began walking towards the village. "Now Hokage-sama! When did I ever say anything about an alliance?"
Naruto's smile didn't waver an inch, falling right back into the persona, this time with genuine enthusiasm. "I believed somewhere between me agreeing to take on a Bijuu for you, and our little heartfelt chat just now."
"Why I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Of course, of course…"
Naruto walked out of the council chamber unable to hide his disgust. The large scroll containing the Sanbi was still slung over his lower back, but just barely. Many of the clan leaders, bar a few that had mostly just stayed quiet through the proceedings, were outraged by his refusal to create a new Jinchuuriki. They considered it an enormous waste of an asset, considering the likely tremendous bargaining position Mei would have in the upcoming talks to properly smooth out their new relationship.
It was a blessing that only a few people in the village had both the expertise and the position within the village's hierarchy to even attempt a sealing; namely, himself, Jiraiya and Danzo. It was the only positive of the exchange that the assembled clan leaders hadn't been delusional enough to believe handing Danzo of all people a Jinchuuriki would be a good idea. The man might have been good at concealing his darker nature in the open, but there was still an air about him that didn't lend itself to trust.
Ultimately, when it came down to his motivations for refusing the village such an asset, he had simply asked a single question.
"Are any of you offering your own children?"
Even Hiashi Hyuuga wasn't cold or detached enough to say anything to that. Although mercifully he had been one of the quieter in the room; the man had always had a secret soft spot for family, even if the way he acted told a different story. If he was honest with himself, if any of them had actually said yes, Naruto wasn't sure if he could have stopped himself killing them on the spot. His child hadn't even been born yet and he couldn't imagine giving them over to such a burden. He didn't know what that said about his father, and he'd rather not think about it.
And speaking of his child…
"So, what? I'm finding out your back in the village from the bluster twins now?"
He couldn't stop the weary smile spreading his whiskered cheeks. Seeing Anko, even if she was glaring at him, after all the craziness he'd gone through was… refreshing.
"Urgent business. Why were you with Izumo and Kotetsu?"
"For the dynamic dolts they are, they get surprisingly good gossip," she admitted, "and it's not like I have much else to do now that I'm officially on medical leave. Don't change the subject though, what's so important you can't even stop in to say you're home?"
Naruto adjusted the scroll on his back. "The kind of business that doesn't wait."
Anko's eyes turned into saucers as she walked over, or maybe waddled was more appropriate – her belly was starting to become more prominent – and prodded the scroll. "Woh, so it's true you really have a Bijuu in there?"
"Okay, there's no way Izumo or Kotetsu knew that. How could you possibly…" he trailed off when he saw Anko's impish grin "…you were just speculating and I good as confirmed it for you." He gave a suffering sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "One day I won't fall for that stupid trick."
The violette grin only brightened. "Not with me you won't. But seriously, a Bijuu in a scroll? Isn't that kind of… delicate?"
"I had a while to come up with this seal, it's a variation on two different containment seals cross-linked to provide simultaneous negative reinforcement so if one begins to degrade… and I'm basically talking gibberish to you, aren't I?"
Anko waved her hand back and forth for a moment before smiling sheepishly. "It's a really strong seal?"
The redhead rolled his eyes. "I'd like to think it's a bit more nuanced than that. But yes, it's a very strong seal."
"And carrying it around on your back?"
At that, Naruto just grinned. "Can you think of anywhere safer?" When she gave him a level stare he chuckled, dropping the over-confident charade. "Plus, I basically engraved a hiraishin marker on the thing, I'll always know where it is."
"You gonna start a collection or something?"
Naruto put a hand to his chin, rubbing an invisible goatee in an eerie impression of Hiruzen. "Everyone needs a hobby… but I think that might rankle some feathers in the other villages. This was likely a one-time thing."
Anko eyed the thing again before shrugging. Ultimately, she put a lot of faith in Naruto and he had never led her wrong before; if he thought it was safe, she was okay with that. "Whatever." It wasn't the normal reaction to having a partner walk around with what amounted to a very powerful bomb on his back – and in the wrong hands it was precisely that – but they were far from normal partners.
She backed that point up by pulling him down for a searing kiss. "Did I mention you're out of the doghouse?" She added with a lidded gaze, only to abort halfway through as she winced, putting a hand to her stomach. "Maybe, I might have to get you back for putting a kicker in me." She rubbed her belly in slow circles, as Shizune had instructed her. "Oh yeah, our girl's a mover."
"Our girl?" Naruto asked bemusedly.
Anko shrugged. "I got a hunch, call it maternal intuition."
Naruto deigned not to comment on that. "Speaking of, where's Haya?"
"Playing with your kiddies."
Naruto winced dramatically and both glanced upward momentarily to pray for his team's sanity. When Haya 'played', nobody was safe. It made for wonderful training though.
"And on that note, as you've so helpfully reminded me, there are some people in the village I need to let know I'm back."
Anko rolled her eyes in good humour. "As long as I'm the one you're saying good night to." Naruto's answer was a quick peck on the lips. "Good boy. Oh, and I thought I should let you know that Jiraiya's in the village; wanted to meet when you had a moment."
Naruto clicked his tongue; the Toad Sannin still wasn't exactly in his good books. "Sure, I'll get around to him eventually," his face brightened, "but there a few people a little higher on my list."
"Alright, see you in a-" but Naruto had already vanished, leaving her to huff irritably. "Show-off."
He took a great deal of satisfaction in seeing his students try to catch their breath, each in their own way. Ami was unabashedly sprawled out on the ground, airing her chest by pulling at her neckline. Sakura was watching her disapprovingly, too out of breath to properly reproach her as she leant against one of the training posts. Sasuke was standing, although there was a slight hunch to his back, as if he was resisting the temptation to rest on his knees.
Their glaring silence was their own way of informing their teacher his 'surprise check-up' was not appreciated. "It's nice to see you're all coming along so well, especially with the techniques I suggested. I'm going to start arranging some solo missions for you guys as a team, really get you that on-the-ground experience." He chuckled when they couldn't decide whether to still be angry at him, or excited at the prospect.
"What brought… this about… sensei?" Ami asked, trying and failing to cover up her heavy breathing.
"It's been… heavily suggested, that providing too much of a safety net for you guys might stifle your growth. I think that's a crock to be honest, but with my recent responsibilities…" he absently touched the scroll on his hip "…and your guys' undeniable growth…" he fought down the instinctive cheeky remark at seeing their grins at the praise "…even I have to admit that having you guys out there on your own can only hone your abilities."
"That's Naru-talk for 'I'm getting really busy, but you guys are like, super-strong now so maybe you don't need me so much.' I think," Haya translated happily from on top of his shoulders.
"Thanks speedster, but we've gotten a pretty good grip on Naru-talk ourselves by now, we know what he meant," Ami said, winking at the silver haired girl.
"Yes well, unravelling the innate mystery that is me aside, keep at it, I'm proud of you guys, I have other places to be… yadda yadda yadda," Naruto drawled, turning on a heel to go.
"Of course, Hokage-Sama." Ami couldn't resist calling to his back.
"Keep up with that lip, and I really will demote you," he shot back over his shoulder.
"So you keep saying," she replied without hesitation, only getting an airy wave as the redhead vanished into the trees. She only waited a few seconds before glancing to her teammates. "Who's up for following him then?"
"Why?" Sasuke muttered, finally getting enough wind back to straighten up. "I have better things to do than trail Sensei around until he gets bored enough to teleport somewhere else. It's an exercise in futility."
"Didn't stop us when we were younger," Sakura offered with a shrug.
"Yeah duck-butt, where's your sense of adventure?"
"Probably somewhere back in those trees, along with half a pint of my sweat; and don't call me that."
"One, eww. Two, come on; you know you're intrigued by that big-ass scroll."
"Of course I am. I'm just pointing out the futility of trying to follow Naruto-Sensei anywhere."
"He's got a point," Sakura threw in, "but I have to admit that I am curious."
"I know, right?" Ami whined, flopping back down on the grass. "What do you guys think's in there?"
Sakura and Sasuke shared a look, the obvious question going unsaid. "I couldn't see anything with my Sharingan," he proffered reluctantly. Bloodline users were always remiss to reveal any flaws in their vaunted techniques.
"Ooh, so it's super-secret then."
"Or simply so heavily inscribed with seals that the sheer interference negates my vision; it is Naruto-sensei."
"Well," Sakura mused, "It's a big scroll. Can't be too many things that it could be."
"Summoning contract?" Ami hazarded, only to have Sasuke shake his head.
"He's shown no indication of having one before. Why start wearing it now? Besides, summoning contracts are usually held by the summons themselves, unless the summoner requests it." He looked up from his musing to see his teammates staring at him blankly. "I may have looked into any contracts the clan may have had before… well, anyway, you really think Sensei of all people wouldn't boast if he managed to get his hands on a contract? They are quite rare."
"What do you think he'd get? I'd bet it'd be something really ironic, like turtles or something."
"Not really pertinent to the conversation. Besides, Gai has the turtle summoning contract." Again, Sasuke looked up to find the other two just staring at him, although this time Sakura broke the tension.
"Seriously? Why doesn't that come up more often? And how do you even know that?"
Sasuke shuddered, a feeling that seemed to creep out of the very depths of his soul. "His clone – and I refuse to believe that creature is anything but – has some sort of fixation with me."
At that Sakura shared his shiver. "You're not alone on that front." A mutual sort of understanding seemed to pass between the two before Ami coughed to break it up.
"So… what then? Something sealed?"
"Probably the most likely answer," Sasuke admitted slowly; he was the type to loathe being proved wrong later.
"What could be so important that it would need Sensei's constant supervision? A Bijuu?" It was her turn to get double-teamed in the stare department.
"Don't be silly Ami."
"That's the stupidest thing I've heard all day, dobe."
"Seriously, that would mean Naruto-Sensei was walking around with a bomb on his back, all through practise."
"Even Tomato-head isn't that reckless."
"Besides that's a horrid accusation to make, it would mean he was risking war with another village right after we got out of one."
"Don't be an idiot."
"Okay! Okay!" Ami yelled in defeat, smiling despite the grilling; she knew her teammates weren't being serious. "Jeez, I was mostly joking anyway. So, what then? Some kind of serious criminal that's so dangerous Sensei needs to be their constant warden?"
Sasuke and Sakura shared another look before shrugging, answering simultaneously.
"Probably."
"Want to break into his house again to find out what it is?"
The Uchiha rolled his eyes. "Because that went so well last time." It had taken him ages to get his eyebrows even again after that stunt.
"Oh come on, we're way better than we were back then."
Sakura just snorted. "Back when we were basically allowed to have free reign of the house because it was just for a prank. This goes a little beyond that."
"And why don't you just ask that psycho anyway? Isn't she your mentor or something?"
"Don't call Anko a psycho, she's just quirky," Ami said defensively only to sag slightly. "I'm going to, but if it really is some kind of village secret she won't; she's actually pretty strict about that sort of stuff."
"No kidding," Sakura mused, disbelief evident on her face. "Which brings up the old point that you still refuse to tell us what got you so flustered the last time we did that."
Ami felt her cheeks grow rosy at the memory. "It was nothing, just a misunderstanding." She quickly jumped to her feet, suddenly intent on changing the topic. "So, who's up for Ramen?"
Sasuke and Sakura shared another one of their looks – honestly if they didn't just get on with it and make out Ami was going to hurl, and oh look, there was Anko's insidious influence on her poor, innocent mind – before the former shrugged.
"As long as it's not that cardboard from Chisaro's."
"No way," Ami practically breathed in relief, recovering admirably, "I'm never taking Kiba's food recommendations again. That guy wouldn't know good food if Chouji was stealing it from him. It's Ichiraku's or nothing for this girl."
"…fine."
Despite his student's beliefs, Naruto didn't simply vanish the moment he was out of sight. He normally would have – if you can teleport… why wouldn't you? – if not for Ami. She much preferred when he carried her around at high speeds. Apparently travel by hiraishin was exhilarating, but over too quickly. She preferred her adrenaline highs to be a bit more drawn out. Honestly, Naruto wasn't sure if he should be indulging her in that regard, and probably wouldn't if it didn't seem so built in to her DNA.
But when it came to the silver-haired speedster he was a soft touch, so ended up running across the village's rooftops at as close to a dead sprint as he felt was safe, for other people anyway. It wasn't as easy as it used to be, Haya was far from the little waif of a girl he had found over a year ago. Still, the way her cheeks turned red from the wind, and her excited screams as he took sharp turns at landscape-blurring speeds, drove him to keep doing it.
Eventually though he had to deal with the inevitable pout when he wound down to a more human speed outside of the hot springs. He had to get around to Jiraiya eventually, and honestly, where else was he going to find the pervert?
"Nii-chan more! Your runs keep getting shorter and shorter."
He hefted her off his shoulders and set her down, trying not to grin at the way she crossed her arms petulantly. "Burden of the hat I'm afraid, I like to think I make up for it in quality."
"S'a stupid hat," she muttered, despite the fact that the day he had come home wearing it for the first time, she had run around the house all evening with it hilariously dwarfing her head.
"Maybe," Naruto agreed in the noncommittal way that was universal adult language for 'You're wrong, but I'm not just going to say that.' "Besides, you're starting to get a bit big for our runs, and soon you won't even need me to go that fast." It wasn't far off from the truth. Haya was a demon at picking up the subtle techniques Naruto used to increase his speed, adding to her already impressive genetics. Naruto really wanted to meet an adult of her clan, they must be a sight to behold.
"No!"
He should have expected what came next, with Haya rocketing forward to clamp down like a limpet on his leg.
"Okay, maybe not that soon." He detached her easily by tickling her under the arms; boy had he been glad to lean that trick. "I'll always have time to run with you, even when you're too old for my shoulders."
She just buried her face into his chest, mumbling something that sounded like 'never' into his shirt, making him chuckle. "Okay, then when I'm too old for you to ride on my shoulders." That earned him an inquisitive look from under a veil of silvery strands.
"I can't imagine you like Jiji." She squinted hard, like she was mentally trying to force the wrinkles onto his face.
"Don't try too hard, I like the way I look," he shot back good naturedly, ruffling her hair as he walked further into the complex. "Now come on, I brought you here for something fun. Remember Jiraiya?"
"Froggy pervert," Haya confirmed with the kind of single-minded nod only kids could manage.
"That's him, he's around here somewhere, probably invisible, I want you to find him." When he got another nod, he grinned. "Remember what Anko taught you to do when you find a pervert?" She looked adorable when she scrunched up her face in thought like that, but eventually she nodded again. "Good, go get 'im."
She was off like a little silver streak and he didn't have to wait long for the shriek of surprise, followed by the inevitable splash. Only after the accompanying sounds of vague feminine fury died off did Haya return, looking like the cat that had caught all the canaries. Time like these remined him that Anko was going to make one hell of a mother. It took a few minutes longer for Jiraiya to drag himself over, but at least by the time he did, he had cleaned himself up slightly and wasn't looking any worse for wear.
"What in the hells are you teaching that girl?" He groused, rubbing what looked to be a faint red footprint on one of his cheeks.
"I didn't build the weapon, I just aim it."
Jiraiya's lip twitched. "You're sounding more and more like the old man with each passing day. How's the hat? Starting to feel like a noose yet?"
"You know, some people actually don't run from all responsibility like it's an angry ex. You should know, you practically helped raise one."
Jiraiya waved him off. "Yeah, Minato always did have a bit of a martyr complex, nice to see it's genetic."
"Maybe you'd know more about it if you didn't spend your days crouched in front of a peephole, spying on girls a third your age."
The self-proclaimed pervert grinned broadly. "Well, I'd go for half my age, but the milf scene is a bit more niche." He gave the redhead a suggestive eyebrow wiggle. "I hear you're trying to break into that genre yourself."
Naruto sighed, running a hand slowly through his hair. "If that's your own weird way of congratulating me for my kid… thanks. Otherwise… well actually I don't really have to threaten you. Anko usually has that base covered."
Jiraiya only shivered momentarily. "Where is the mother-to-be, anyway?"
"From what I've heard, probably off getting chummy with your old teammate, they seem to have grown disturbingly close as of late."
This time the fear was more pronounced as Jiraiya nodded sagely. "That is disturbing news. Although the certainly amusing story of how the hell you managed to get Tsunade back here aside, I did actually want to talk to you for more than just a catch up."
"I'm not signing the toad contract, I don't get why you're so persistent about this."
Jiraiya waved again. "No, not that. You've made your point morethan clear, thanks. I actually wanted to let you know that I may have scrounged up a lead about this brat's clan."
Haya stuck her tongue out at the older man before the weight of his words actually sunk in, the petulant look becoming wide-eyed in an instant. "You found the clan?"
"Maybe, can't say for sure. Like I said, it's a lead. When you told me to keep an ear to the ground I kept getting in reports of a group of silver-haired people that would pass through towns long enough to buy up a bunch of food and supplies before moving on without a trace. There was nothing concrete for a long while, and definitely no pattern to their movements, bloody definition of nomads. Couple of days ago though I got a strange tidbit about a girl staying behind. Not for long though, a week later she was gone."
"Not much of a lead," Naruto pointed out, a little disappointed. He wanted Haya to find her family, even as attached as he grown to her.
"Ah but here's the kicker, she didn't go alone. Apparently, she ran off with one of the village's young Batchelors, proper love-at-first sight kind of stuff. It really got the old creative juices flowing."
Naruto grimaced at the image. "I bet it did. But if they're gone, how does that help?"
Jiriaya rolled his eyes. "Kid, these guys are a nightmare to track because they're so fast, right?"
Understanding quickly dawned on the redhead. "But the civilian isn't, he'll leave a more prominent trail." He grunted irritably. "But not for long. Damn, it's always just when I get back."
He was surprised by the sobering expression on Jiraiya's face as he patted the younger shinobi on the back. "If there's a trail, and I'm warning it may just be an if, then it won't go cold that quickly. Certainly not fast enough to warrant missing a night with your family, you'll want to take my word on that." The sincerity in the Sannin's voice was... unusual.
"You're right, thanks for the information. I can't believe I'm saying this but I guess I owe you one."
He was much happier when Jiraiya immediately reverted back to a more typical, goofy expression. "Ho ho? A favour from the new Hokage, now that will be one I'll most certainly remember to cash."
"Sure whatever, just try not to get beaten to death by a mob of angry women before then. Or do, you should be old enough to lie in your own bed." Emphasis on should.
"Hasn't happened yet!" Jiraiya exclaimed brightly, turning to return to his… work.
The redhead glanced down to find Haya pulling at the edge of her shirt, looking distracted, so quickly swept her up onto his shoulders. He was sure this was a lot to process for the girl. "Come on speedster, we better get home, we'll have a busy day tomorrow."
"Do you really think we'll find the clan?" She asked, in an uncharacteristically subdued tone.
"I… I don't know Haya, but I promised you I would try, and I don't intend to break that any time soon." He bobbed up and down suddenly to break her contemplative gaze and grinned broadly. "Come on, I feel like taking the long way home tonight, we can even stop by that ice cream place if you want." For all the weight that had been piled on such a young girl's shoulders, she was still just a child and in many ways, predictable.
"The one that does sprinkles?"
"You bet the one that does sprinkles!"